Very Special (song)

"Very Special"
Single by Debra Laws
from the album Very Special
B-side "All the Things I Love"
Released August 1981
Format 7" single
Recorded 1981
Genre
Length 4:29
Label Elektra
Songwriter(s)
  • Lisa Peters
  • William Jeffrey
Producer(s)
Debra Laws singles chronology
"Very Special"
(1981)		 "Be Yourself"
(1981)

"Very Special"
(1981)		 "Be Yourself"
(1981)

"Very Special" is a song by Debra Laws from 1981. It is the title track of her first album, and features her brother Ronnie with call-and-response backing vocals. The song reached #90 on the US Billboard Hot 100 during the summer of the year.[1] It peaked at number 11 on the R&B chart.[2] On that chart, it ranks as the 64th biggest hit of 1981.

"Very Special" has been most notably covered and/or sampled by Big Daddy Kane and Jennifer Lopez, and has been the subject of lawsuits in this regard.

Charts

Chart (1981) Peak
position
US Billboard Hot 100[3] 90
US Billboard R&B[4] 11

Big Daddy Kane cover

"Very Special"
Single by Big Daddy Kane featuring DJ Spinderella
from the album Looks Like a Job For...
B-side "Stop Shammin'"
Released June 22, 1993
Format 12", Cassette, CD
Recorded 1993
Genre Hip hop
Length 5:05
Label Cold Chillin' / Reprise
Songwriter(s) Antonio Hardy, Lisa Peters, William Jeffrey
Producer(s) Big Daddy Kane
Big Daddy Kane singles chronology
"How U Get a Record Deal?"
(1993)		 "Very Special"
(1993)		 "In the PJs"
(1994)

"How U Get a Record Deal?"
(1993)		 "I'll Be Around"
(1993)		 "In the PJs"
(1994)

"Very Special" was covered by Big Daddy Kane in 1993. It was the second single released from his fifth studio album, Looks Like a Job For.... Produced by Kane himself, the song is based on—and thus musically incorporates "Very Special". It is a duet with Salt-n-Pepa member DJ Spinderella. The chorus was performed by vocalists Karen Anderson and Laree Williams.

The song became a crossover hit, becoming Big Daddy Kane's first and only single to reach the top 40 of the Billboard Hot 100, peaking at number 31.

Track listing

A-side

  1. "Very Special" (Album Version) – 5:05
  2. "Very Special" (Underground Mix) – 3:03
  3. "Very Special" (Edit Without Female Rap) – 3:53

B-side

  1. "Stop Shammin'" (Album Version) – 3:57
  2. "Stop Shammin'" (Instrumental Version) – 3:57

Chart history

Chart (1993) Peak
position
Billboard Hot 100 31
Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks 23
Billboard Hot Rap Singles 9
Billboard Hot Dance Music/Maxi-Singles Sales 24
Billboard Rhythmic Top 40 6

Other cover versions and sampling

  • In early 2003, Jennifer Lopez sampled "Very Special" in her international hit song, "All I Have", which reached number one in the US. This usage became the subject of a lawsuit by Laws as a result of Elektra Records giving their unilateral consent to the sampling.
  • In 2013, K. Michelle sampled the song in "V.S.O.P.", which charted almost identically to Laws' original on both the pop (#89) and R&B charts (#13).

References

  1. ↑ Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles 1955-1990 - ISBN 0-89820-089-X
  2. ↑ 1981: The Top 100 Soul/Funk/Disco Singles
  3. ↑ Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles 1955-1990 - ISBN 0-89820-089-X
  4. ↑ 1981: The Top 100 Soul/Funk/Disco Singles
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.